1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a seamless rigid countertop and method therefor. A countertop in accordance with the present invention is tolerant of the harsh physical, chemical, and biological environments found in food preparation arenas and particularly kitchens. In particular, the present invention utilizes a combination of sheet metal characteristics melded with cabinet making skills coupled with powder coating to construct seamless rigid countertops. Countertops produced in accordance with the present invention are stable under temperature extremes (essentially inflammable), stain resistant, physically resistant to abrasions and chipping, resistant to chemical degradation from solvents and bleaches, have a continually smooth surface for easier sanitation from microorganism contamination, can be produced with a myriad aesthetically pleasing characteristics including color, shape, etc. Countertops can be easily powder coated again at a future time to repair blemishes or to create a desirable aesthetic décor. Known art may be found in U.S. Classes 524, 156, and 427, subclasses 71 and 430 as well as in other classes and subclasses.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional countertops for kitchens and the like have proven useful as a flat work area. Such countertops are usually fitted above storage cabinets to thus provide double utility. When possible, unitary countertops without seams are preferred for several reasons. However, in many situations, and particularly in kitchens, unitary countertops without seams have not been practical because the room layout demanded countertops having divergent sections (i.e. U-shaped or L-shaped countertops). Countertops to accommodate such layouts have typically been assembled from discrete component segments to form a countertop assembly. Such an assembly inherently possessed seams between abutting discrete segments. Such seams were normally filled with caulk or the like in an effort to prevent infiltration by debris, liquids or the like and in an effort to cosmetically disguise the seam.
The modern kitchen countertop is therefore ordinarily an assembly of discrete abutting segments with seams between each segment and with the whole assembly installed on top of a cabinet foundation. The assembled countertop usually has a partially radiused front edge or lip and a raised rear backsplash usually six inches or less in height. It is preferable that the backsplash be an integral extension of the flat top surface of each segment rather than another discrete segment piece joined to the flat top since such a configuration would leave yet another seam between the back splash and the flat top surface of the countertop.
Countertops, especially those in food preparation arenas, must be durable since they are subjected to a harsh environment on a regular basis. These food preparation arenas including kitchens that can have an environment that may vary from very hot items just removed from a stove or oven or other heat source (which can be as hot as 500 degrees F.) to very cold items just removed from a freezer or refrigerator or other cold source (which can be as cold as 10 degrees F.). The environment also can be quite wet from fluid spills or dry from heated home interiors during the winter. Stains from minerals such as iron in the water to organic such as blood or food coloring; weathering from detergents, soaps, acids (vinegar) and household solvents (bleach) and ammonia water as well as physical gouging with knife points or edges are also common hazards. The environment often also includes biological agents such as Escherichia coli, salmonella, and other pathogenic microorganisms.
The countertop corners and edges can also create a safety hazard if too sharp. This is particularly true if someone slips and falls into them or otherwise bumps into these potential safety hazards and therefore care must be taken to ensure that such are not overly sharp or pointed.
Conventional countertops used in homes, especially kitchens, have for a long period been principally made from durable materials such as wood or masonry. Early masonry cabinets often used ceramic tile countertops since such were very durable and also a decorative material.
As new materials have been developed, many have been adapted as countertop material. Currently kitchen countertops can be constructed of wood, laminated materials, ceramic tiles, masonry stones such as granite, stainless steel and molded plastic, as well as a myriad of other materials. One commonality with many of these materials is that to keep costs low, the basic components come in predetermined lengths and styles from which discrete segments for a countertop are chosen and then these segments are typically assembled at the installation site. A frequent vexatious problem with most such assembled countertops involves the seams that invariably result between abutting segments.
Seams where the countertop segments join are often unsightly. The seams, if on an external corner, often snag clothing, dishtowels, etc. causing damage to these items. In addition, these can also snag flesh and cause bodily injury. Any seams where two component pieces of countertop butt against each other will pose an additional hazard. Seams provide access for fluid penetration, such as milk or the like. Penetrating fluids can subsequently spoil and cause repulsive odors and unsanitary conditions. The exposed seam in the counter top will also result in a hard to clean locale that can harbor pathogenic microorganisms. Of the foregoing materials, plastic is currently used to provide divergent countertops without seams but such is not without problem. For molded plastics, deviation from these predetermined dimensions results in substantial price increases as the fabrication process requires extensive time and specially trained craftsmen to be completed successfully, since special tools and procedures are necessary. If a shaped, one-piece part of continuous or monolithic plastic material is desired, such a part can only be produced by casting it in a mold cavity under special conditions. In addition to the high costs of such a process and for the installation of the parts (fitting, gluing it in place to a flat sheet, and/or finishing, for example,) there are often color differences between the cast bowl, for example, and the flat slab of the same material. These same economic facts will be true for any products that require casting in a mold.
In the past where metal has been used as a countertop material, it was painted, coated with enamel, or made from stainless steel. Those metal countertops that were painted had a tendency with time for the paint to peel and crack, were easily damaged by heat, and stained easily. Those countertops coated with enamel were prone to chip and be restrictive in the choice of colors and finishes. Stainless steel countertops were restricted to one appearance, that of “stainless steel” and are quite expensive and usually restricted to commercial applications. Metal countertops have also been generally restricted to straight runs of single sheet material and consequently not well adapted for divergent layouts without seams.
Recently, powder coatings, which are dry, finely divided, free flowing, solid materials at room temperature, have gained considerable popularity over liquid coatings for metallic substrates for a number of reasons. For one, powder coatings are user and environmentally friendly materials, since they are virtually free of harmful fugitive organic solvent carriers that are normally present in liquid coatings. Powder coatings, therefore, give off little, if any, volatile pollutants to the environment when cured. This eliminates many solvent emission problems associated with liquid coatings, such as air pollution or dangers to the health of workers employed in coating operations.
Powder coatings are also clean and convenient to use. They are applied in a clean manner over the substrate, usually metal, since they are in dry, solid form. The powders are easily swept up in the event of a spill and do not require special cleaning and spill containment supplies, as do liquid coatings. Working hygiene is, thus, improved. No messy liquids are used that adhere to worker's clothes and to the coating equipment, which leads to increased machine downtime and clean up costs.
Powder coatings are essentially 100% recyclable. Over sprayed powders can be fully reclaimed and recombined with the powder feed. This provides very high coating efficiencies and also substantially reduces the amount of waste generated. Recycling of liquid coatings during application is not done, which leads to increased waste and hazardous waste disposal costs.
Thus, powder coating is an advantageous method for protecting metal surfaces. However, powder coating has heretofore not been employed as a protective material for metal countertops.
In addition to meeting the above-described challenges, a material destined for use as a kitchen countertop, for example, should have a surface which is easily repairable and restored to its original appearance or new appearance to match new kitchen design decors, and be protected against flammability.
Thus, a need exists for an improved countertop that is aesthetically attractive with unitary or seamless construction, especially when employed in a complex divergent layout, while also providing good solutions to previous problems arising from the physical, chemical, and biological environments found in kitchens.